Southern Tier adds new brewhouse, ships to Texas

“Neeew York City!” … Well, close enough, Texans from a BBQ commercial in the ’90s — New York State-based Southern Tier Brewing will be shipping its craft beers your way this year.

Southern Tier Brewing Co., based in Lakewood, N.Y., announced the expansion of its distribution network with the addition of Texas, beginning with Austin, Houston and San Antonio.

Distribution to Texas has been a long-awaited goal for the growing New York brewery. Craft beer drinkers in Texas will have access to Southern Tier’s 2X Series, along with new seasonal recipes and everyday offerings. Additions to the 2X Series will include: 2XRye, a flavorful double Rye IPA; 2XSteam, a 2X Series interpretation of a California Common; and 2XNitro, a nitrogen-based double milk stout. Also added to the brewery’s roster of beers such as Phin&Matt’s, 2XIPA and UnEarthly Imperial IPA are two new bottle-conditioned offerings.

Available seasonally in 22-oz. bottles, look for Compass. Bottle-conditioned with Champagne yeast and brewed with rosehips, this sparkling beer is a refreshing and unique addition to the brewery’s well-rounded catalog. Live, a bottle-conditioned Pale Ale, is enthusiastically released in 12-oz. bottles and will be available year-round. With packaging based on concert ticket stubs, Live is a beer that is ready to rock.

“We have looked forward to distributing in Texas for years,” said Phin Demink, president of Southern Tier. “We have made a lot of upgrades and improvements to the brewery, and we’re proud to finally be able to reach out to beer drinkers in the Lone Star state.”

Upgrades include completion of a 110-barrel Steinecker brew house, as well as doubling cellar capacity to more than 7,000 barrels (bbls). Quality control and product consistency have remained paramount to every decision made since the brewery opened the doors of their modest facility in 2003. With 60,000 bbls of beer out the door in 2012, and the addition of exciting new markets, Southern Tier Brewing looks to 2013 with optimism.